Zoid Wars
by Davan
Summary: In a world ruled by the Backdraft, the last of a dying hope lies in the hearts of a failing rebellion, and in the hands of both traitor and rouge alike. (Edit note - Formatting is not correct... thanks FF.N)


In a world ruled by the Backdraft, the last of a dying hope lies in the hearts of a failing rebellion, and in the hands of both traitor and rouge alike. 

Zoid Wars

By Davan

Once Upon a Time

            She impatiently brushed at a strand of loose red hair, softly cursing the braid that was for the umpteenth time, refusing to hold her hair in place. She had been attempting to get dinner cooked for her and her younglings, but thanks to the sturdy wind that had been blowing for the better part of the day. The hunters had come back with less than usual, and that was on top of little Jim breaking his arm. She had no qualms with healing the poor child, but the shrieks of pain had ripped into her far more than it had his mother, she could not have gotten there fast enough to suit her. So now, her temper was flying, and she was struggling to reel it in. The younglings did not deserve her lashing out at them. 

            Grabbing the knife she had kept from her days as a mercenary, she eyed the small clutter of pathetic looking vegetables, and the last of the meat she had dried the previous week. Cursing slightly, she started chopping them into smaller bits. Maybe she could disguise them into something that resembled actual food. She would have better luck getting the younglings to eat them that way.

            Marcus, at ten, had reached the age in which he was more meticulous on what he could eat. Fortunately, for her, however, he like the rest of them remembered what it was like to want any sort of food at all. So he would do his best to forget what he was eating, and eat it on the grounds that it was indeed food, something that they had all been lacking a year ago.

            She frowned softly when another loose strand of hair made its way back across her cheek, as she impatiently brushed it aside. Annoyance flashed across her pert features, and she briefly wondered if cropping it short against her head would be worth the effort. A soft sound caught her attention and she turned with a smile when as the sound of small feet running across her well packed dirt floor became her evident. She smiled then, relief washing through her. Another day had gone by, and they were safe. 

            "Eena!" was the only warning she had before a pair of small arms wrapped themselves firmly around her waste.

            "Lathia," she said with a grin, before turning and hugging the small being with a grin, which returned the smile with her own beaming version.

            "Food?" was the imploring question. 

            "Dinner will be ready in a few minutes leveling, have you washed up?"

            Clean white hands were presented with another grin before she moved off to sort through the treasures that her older 'siblings' were already going through. Leena shook her head, she would have to send them off to wash up again after this, but she could not begrudge them their fun. There was little enough of it anymore…

            She had found them little over a year ago, or they had found her she was never sure which. The middle child, Tanya, had a broken arm and a high fever, it had not take much for her to heal the girl, or for word to get around that she was a healer, and a powerful one by there reckoning. The next thing she knew, she had adopted the three children, and had wrangled a deal out of the hunters for food, in exchange for healing.

            They had all profited greatly from the deal.

            The children had the most however; it gave them a place to call home, no longer having to live off the streets, a roof over their head, and for the most part a belly full of food, and the warmth of a constant fire in the winter. They in return brought a joy to her life that she had thought lost forever. Over all, both parties benefited, and she was as happy here, as happy as she had ever been with her last family.

            A soft smile lingered over her lips as she called her children to dinner, the bright faces grinned eagerly up at her, before eagerly accepting the bowls off meat and vegetables that she offered them. Settling back with her own cup of water, she watched them tuck into their food with a grin. The gaunt and pinched faces that had greeted her all last winter were replaced by healthier looking faces, and pink cheeks, they were by no means fat, and barely had enough flesh on them to be considered skinny, but they were healthy and that is all she could ask for.

            "Your gathers went well today?" she said softly.

            "Yes, we found several things that we should be able to trade in." Marcus said. "We should be able to buy supplies with today's gathering, and won't have to ask the hunters to do much for us for a while."

            She grinned at his clearly delighted expression. He hated relying on the unstable hunters as much as she did, and even though he was only eight he tended to strike a hard bargain, having developed a critical eye for supplies, and such, it was hard to get something over the small boy. If it was good he would pay you, but you would get no more than what it was worth from him. For that, she was grateful. She herself tended to dislike bartering with people. She had to high a temper to sit there and stare coldly at someone who would attempt to steal from her, by raising his prices, simply because she was a women.

            She hated liars.

            Especially when they were far more interested in their own means of survival, and not in trying to help the community survive.

            "Eena," Lathia said, her little eyes wide, "I finished."

            She took the offered bowl with a smile, "thank you loveling, now maybe you should get ready for bed?"

            "Okay."

            She watched in amusement as the little girl moved to her pallet in the far corner, and set to changing her clothing into the long shift that she used to sleep in.

            "Leena, can we go to the market in the morning?" Tanya questioned, before taking Marcus's bowl, and settling it as well as her own into the bucket of water they used for the washing.

            "Yes." She said with a nod. "Tomorrow should be clear."

            Marcus smiled. "And with the change in weather, more people will show up."

            "Which will give us a better chance at selling this stuff," Tanya triumphantly added.

            Leena laughed, "You convinced me, now off to bed with you two, or else you won't be awake long enough to go to the market."

            The two smiled indulgently at her, and she grinned back. Those two children, at eight and seven, had been surviving like fully-grown adults, long before she had ever met them.

             "Good night Leena," they chorused before moving to their own corners of the hut, Tanya beside Lathia, and Marcus on the back entrance, with Leena guarding the front.

~~~

            A dark scowl moved across her features as she wrapped shadows around her Zoid, thanking the gods above that she had managed to find some sort of shelter in this weather. Tugging her fur cloak closer to her small frame, she shivered in her chair while keeping her eyes on the monitors in front of her. To loose him would waste weeks of tracking, and she did not intend to do that. Then again, he just had to pick the coldest place in the known world to keep his Zoid. She was quiet positive, as she was certain he knew by now she was on his trail again, that he was doing this to spite her.

            Tossing her thick braid black back behind her she glared at the blinking image on her screen. Even with the thick sides of her Zoid protecting her from the elements, she was freezing cold. Tucking her short legs to her chest, she wrapped the fur-lined cloak she was wearing tightly around herself. Giving into the impulse she mentally, and vocally, cursed Vega Obscura into the seven depths of hell and back again. While getting her hands around his neck and strangling him would have been more rewarding, it was also impossible.  Anyone coming within two feet with the intention of grievous bodily harm usually ended up dead themselves.

            She watched the panel in front of her for another whole five seconds, before groaning and beating her head on the backrest behind her. He was still not moving! A frustrated groan forced its way passed her lips, as she curled even further into herself, wishing that whoever had made her Zoid had thought of winter, and heaters. Someone else had joined Vega an hour ago, she observed, and there they had sat since. She had shielded herself as much as she could, and stayed just within the range of her scanners in case it was someone who had any sort of mental capabilities. She was aware that Vega knew she was out there. They had been playing this cat and mouse game for months, and there had been a few occasions where she had barely escaped him with little to spare the last time. No, he was aware she out there somewhere, he might not know exactly where, but he knew. 

            'Move damn you!' 

            If she stayed out here much longer, she was convinced that she was going to freeze to death. He had to have a thermal suit on, or was impervious to the cold. Knowing her luck, it was both. She almost leapt for joy when the slight dot on her screen moved. It was with a small groan that she realized he was heading her direction. Not that she should be complaining as it would be easier to track him this way, but it would make her more assessable to his scanners if she was not careful. 

            It took a few moments of work, as she quickly made sure that her Zoid was properly covered. He traveled fast, almost as fast as her Sykes, she knew this relatively well, and yet she had barely finished the preparations, when the warning beep that a Zoid was within scanner range, was leaving. She looked up through her screen and an involuntary shiver moved down her spin. Only this time it was induced by the cold.  The Berserk Fury, it was, in and of itself, the single most terrifying Zoid on Zi, second to none.

            She had heard that the black and red armor had once been a white purple, and it was hard for her to imagine. The black color reflected the pilot within, and the deep crimson that lined the Zoid made it seem that much more intimidating. Whomever it had been to make it white in the first place, well, someone had said that Vega had hated it. Anything Vega hated evaporated, and if that meant taking out the man who made the armor… she wasn't going to be saying any prayers for his soul. Vega Obscura was death himself. 

            She watched silently, forcing herself to breath in and out as the Zoid silently moved along its route. He was paying not one wit of attention to her. Not at the rate he was going. She was tempted to find out whom he was meeting with and track them, but she would loose Vega, again. Moreover, after spending the better part of six months tracking him back down after that last battle… she had best retain the current course. He disappeared far too easily. She waited until he was at the edge of her scanners once more, before bringing her Zoid to life to follow him. She had the one advantage, as long as she stayed out of his reach; she was faster than he was. That was it… pathetically enough.  

            Moving her Zoid into gear she followed at a more docile pace, noting with relief that he was headed for the nearby town she had noted on their trip out. If luck were on her side, he would stop at an inn, to get some rest, as it was not a reported rebel 'influenced' town. She would have to stow her own Zoid out somewhere, and walk into to town, but she would give just about anything for a hot bath, and if he stopped, she was risking it. 

            Sleeping in nature got old in about a week, sleeping out in the freezing cold slush that the atmosphere was spitting down upon the heads of its inhabitants… well… that got old in less than a minute. She was hoping that he was as cold as she was, and would want to stay over. Maybe… just maybe… things were looking up. 

~~~

            Leena smiled at her children as they continued their path down the main street, Marcus keeping a sharp eye out for the vendors that they would want, while Lathia, blessedly ignorant of the dangers of the world still, bellowing out the words to some nameless song. Tanya had a firm gripe on Lathia's hand, and was shooting glares at anyone who looked at the child disapprovingly. She could only shake her head and join them, their fierce protectiveness being one of the things that had drawn her to them in the first place. They had been more than willing to take on the world to protect each other, and even now, granted the measure of safety they were gifted with, they tended to cling to each other, afraid that it would all be taken away. Their only constant in their lives, was that they knew they could depend on each other. 

            It was something they clung to with both fists, and she would no more deny them that than she would whatever protection she could offer them. 

            "Eena, Martus say we go dere!" 

            She looked down at the small girl who was tugging at her skirts and smiled, with a nod. "All right, shall we go?"

            Lathia nodded rapidly, the pigtails she had done her hair in that morning bouncing along her shoulders, as she skipped off, to show Leena the way. By the time they arrived Marcus was in full debate with merchant, and by the disgruntled expression on the man's face, he was winning. 

            A soft smile spread across her lips at that knowledge, as she eyed the man, her own gaze carefully blank against his frustrated glance as he looked up at her. She nodded politely to the man, before turning her gaze to Marcus who had a blank expression on his face, his eyes narrowed as he continued to do his business with the man. She could not hear everything that was being said, but Marcus was practically accusing the man of high way robbery and she was forced to stifle her giggles at that. She could the sound of footsteps approaching, and by the man's concerned expression, she figured he had heard as well. She smiled as Marcus approached with the items he had been bartering for, a triumphant expression on his face, as he placed them in the back he had taken to carrying on his back. 

            "Did you get everything you wanted?"

            "Yes," Marcus grinned, and winked at her, leaving her with the impression that he had planned that.  

            "Good, do you want to go somewhere else, or do you have everything you wanted?"

            "I need to go to Portabeloes."

            "All right," she agreed. Portabeloes was the one place in town that sold food. They had an active enterprise with the hunters, and gatherers in the area, and were stocked with everything that anyone could need. They were rarely able to go there, as they required you have the payment half in coin, half in whatever else you wished to use. She briefly wondered what he had been up to that he would be able to produce that much coin. 

            The walk was a short one, though Leena had the oddest impression that they were being watched. However, each time she craned her neck to or fro, she could not see anyone who looked, or was acting suspicious. Marcus seemed impervious to it, which did nothing to relive her mind. He might have had better senses than her but he was still a kid, a kid who was currently gloating over his newest treasures, and if she knew him, his new ability to feed his siblings that night… without having to practically beg the hunters for food. 

            She smiled at Tanya, who arrived on their way, her own pack filled with items. She caught site of a very green apple, and wondered where the girl had managed to find that item, as it would have to have been imported from the south, and far beyond their price range. She was afraid to ask, for it would insult their sense of independence. 

            She was surprised when Marcus returned from the stores, having asked them to remain outside, in less time than it would have taken her. A pleased smile spread across his lips, as he winked at Tanya, who offered him her own cheeky grin in return.

            "Do I really want to know?" she questioned, while scooping Tanya up, and settling onto her hip, when the small girl asked to be carried. 

            "It's nothing bad, Leena. I dare say you will like it." Tanya chirped her normal sense of decorum forgotten as she skipped down the street giddily. She and Tathia exchanged amused glances, before following the two giddy children who were now practically dancing down the street. 

            "You know, I think they're right." She murmured to Tathia, who giggled and wrapped her small arms around her neck in delight. 

            "Me to!"

            They were right, Leena realized, several hours later, as she watched the children spoon the hot mash and fruit into their mouths at a fast rate, with a grin. The grain substance had never been a favorite of hers, but Marcus had done wonders with it, having added the apples that Tanya had found, and the honey he had bought at the store. A large grin was currently spread across his features, as he watched his siblings dig into it with delight, a proud gleam having entered, and stayed, in his eyes. 

            "This is wonderful Marcus." She congratulated with a grin. 

            He beamed back at her, a the pride moving from his gaze and down to his eyes as finally took his own bowl and began eating. "It was my mother's recipe," he explained. 

            "She must have been a wonderful cook." 

            "She was," Tanya said with a smile. 

            Tathia nodded, "ood!" she declared around the food that she was still stuffing into her mouth. 

            Leena chuckled softly, "Smaller bites dear."

            She nodded, taking care to bite into her food more carefully, "'tay."

            "Leena," Tanya said, hesitation written clearly across her features. "What did you do before you met us? I know you said you were in a mercenary group, and we can do enough guess work to know you were a healer, but did you do anything else?"

            Leena settled her bowl in her lap, her expression going blank. 

            "I mean… you don't have to answer if you don't want… but… we were curious."

            She shook her head, "No… it's perfectly alright. It's just… I…" Leena hesitated, "I don't like speaking of it much."

            "Oh."

            She could see the disappointment written clearly across their expression and sighed softly. "It doesn't mean I won't tell you Tanya, it just means it might take me a while to get it all out."

            Tanya smiled, "Thank you."

            She nodded, "Finish dinner, we will talk after that all right?"

            Marcus nodded, "Sounds fair to me." That was that, with the children Marcus's word was law. 

            Dinner continued in a leisurely fashion. The children were enjoying the treat far too much to rush through it, and she was to busy contemplating what to tell them, and what not. It would not be fair to any of them if she left parts out, but even if they had seen all the darkness of the world, she did not want to give them any of her own.  

            "Leena are you done?" 

            She looked over with a nod, looking at her empty bowl and Tanya and Marcus's worried expressions, and smiled. "Yes, I was just thinking."

            They nodded, "Tathia is in bed." Tanya explained, once she noticed that she was looking for the small child. 

            "Do you mind telling us now?" Marcus questioned. 

            Leena smiled and settled into a more comfortable position. "If you two don't mind staying up."

            "We're fine," Tanya spoke for both of them.

            She nodded. "All right, but its long, and I warn you, it's not all that pleasant."

            "Whose is anymore?" Marcus said.

            She smiled softly at him in understanding.

            "I don't remember much of my parents. I remember my mother had a very soft voice, and my father was very strong, or perhaps that was just my child mind at work, I do not know. The one memory I have is of my brother and I floating around the room giggling. I have always assumed my mother or father were some sort of telepaths. Then one day there was this insane amount of heat, and screaming. I remember my father yelling at my mother to hide my brother and I. It becomes very hazy past there. I remember wandering around for what seemed like days… and then a young man finding me and taking me in. I didn't know it at the time, but he was a mercenary."

            "It took me a long time to figure out what they were up to. Working on a rebellion, and adopting children like me, who had no home, as a cover operation. If we wanted to, we were trained, and treated as part of the family. If not we were taken care of, loved on, and kept in the dark. I and one other child, a little younger than me, named Jamie, decided to be trained, and to help those that had taken us in."

            She looked at the two children who sat in front of her with wide eyes. "It was rather foolish of us, thinking that perhaps we had something that everyone else would need, or that we could help, being only children as we were." She smiled softly. "But it was all we had to cling to, and they didn't begrudge it to us either. If anything, they did every thing they could to help us. "

            "I am not sure what means more to whom… them helping us, or us being able to help them. The loved all of us, and though Jaime and me were determined to put ourselves in danger for them, they never reprimanded us. Only taught us what they could. We were determined to defeat those that had hurt us; while they were determined to teach us what they could so we could."

            "And then I lost them." Her words had softened, until she was not sure if she could hear herself properly out of the ringing of her hears. "I am still not sure what happened exactly. I was talking to Jamie, and we were joking about a party we were going to have next week, when the Zoid next to me just exploded. I don't remember much after that, I can remember their screams, and Jamie yelling my name, the next thing I new I was looking at what was left of my Zoid, and there was nothing but a smoldering mesh of metal and charred bodies everywhere. I am not sure how I survived only that my cockpit stayed in place, and that is what ultimately kept me from dying. At least, that was my theory… I am not sure, but no one else made it." She had not been conscious of the tears that slipped down her face until she felt them dropping onto the hands that were clinched in her shirt.         

            Then she was being hugged on both sides, small arms wrapped around her next and stomach, and soothing words whispered into her ear, as well as apologies. Apologies for asking her to talk about it, but thanking her for doing so, and then that they loved her, and they were here now, and they were not leaving. No matter what!

            It was some time later that Leena stood there watching the children sleep, her eyes dried of her earlier tears, though her head ached, and her lashes clung together when she blinked. It was a small price to pay for the children in front of her. She realized with a smile. There was really nothing that she would not do for them, and she had the feeling they returned the sentiments. They were her family now, and she would protect them. 

            She would not fail anyone else. This time she would keep them safe. 

~~~

            She watched with something avid to disgust as the men in the inn, that she had roomed at for the night, groveled at Vega's feet. She had been more than surprised to check into her measly hotel room and walk downstairs, only to find Vega sitting in the chair closest to the fire, a calm expression written across his features. It had taken her brain longer than normal to recognize his profile, and even longer for her to realize she was staring, and that, if anything, would bring his attention down on her faster than she could blink. The next thing she found herself doing was putting as much distance, and as many solid objects, between her and him that she could. She kept her gaze on him for a few more seconds, and was satisfied when he didn't turn around to look at her, even though she was sure that he knew he was being watched. 

            She considered getting her food and taking it back to her room with her, until a quick look at the company she was keeping told her that it would not be welcomed here. Making sure the hood of her cloak was firmly tucked around her head; she ordered her food from the woman standing before her with a sigh. She had gotten her bath in before she had come down, and felt like a new woman, though she wondered if she should have waited to take that bath. 

            She had been in the company of enough of the lower class men in her life, to understand when and where to act like a lady and when to knock the teeth out of the man's face. While she was not physically that attractive, nor did her personality endear her as a lady, down in the slums, even in a inn that that held a nice facade such as this one, men who were in the service would do a lot to get a little female 'companionship'. Course with Vega here, they were going to go one of two ways. One was to go for the girl that would impress their 'leader' or leave the women of the room alone until he had his pick. A quick glance around the room was all she needed before she relaxed into her corner with a soft sigh. No one was paying one wit of attention to her. They were all too transfixed by Vega's appearance. 

            Which she could honestly say pleased her. She had never been this close to Vega, only ever seeing him from a distance through binoculars, so this gave her a chance for some close range reconnaissance. She didn't have to use her 'gift sight' to see how powerful he was. He excreted authority and power from his body language alone; from the way he sat in his chair, to his gaze, which slid mercilessly, almost scathingly over the crowded area every now and then. He was a predator, constantly moving, not missing a movement… a hunter, and a very dangerous one at that. 

            His head easily rested above the chair, which was made for a man of average height, around five eleven, which concurred with her observation from a distance, but it still left her guessing at how tall he really was. Her estimation, from the proximity she was in, he was around six feet. He was one of the most incredible good-looking men she had seen, with high cheekbones, almost jet-black hair, and dark, ominous eyes, he had the most alluring aura. She had the feeling he had used these traits to his advantage on more than one occasion. He was lean; thanks partially to his height, but even so, she could see the carefully created muscle underneath his tight body suit. She knew it had to exist; just to control the Berserk Fury, one had to be strong not only mentally, physically as well. To pilot it for as many years Vega had, he had to surpass that threshold, meaning he had to be much stronger than he looked.  

            Jumping slightly as the hot plate of food she had ordered, slid in front of her via the serving girl, she turned her attention to the warm mash, fresh bread, and stew, in front of her. It was an unusual combination, but she was thankful for it. The last few weeks she had been eating pre-cooked food, and with the smell and sight of actual food… it had her mouth watering. Nodding to the girl to pour more drink for her, she tucked into the food. It wasn't the best, in certain sections, it could barely pass as food, but she was so ready for a change.  So, as long as it had some flavor to it, she would eat it without hesitation.           

            It didn't take her long to finish her meal, the hot food settling pleasantly into her stomach, the heated wine doing more for warming her than the cloak wrapped around her shoulders, or the fire in the corner. Several of the men were fast approaching drunk, and one or two of them were already there. Several of the serving girls had already been forced into evasive maneuvers, and she had the odd impression that she was being watched as well. Her tiny frame marked her as female, even if nothing else about her did. Peeking hesitantly around the room, she almost blanched when she realized that Vega's was watching her, before she hurriedly shifted her eyes elsewhere. He was not someone to dodge confrontation, and if he thought she was challenging him… 

            Swallowing a groan, she watched as one of the men grabbed a serving girl, and tugged her into his lap, his lips pressing into the side of her head, before murmuring something into her ear. The girl had a definite annoyed expression upon her face, telling her that she had done this more than once, before she jabbed backwards with her elbow, catching the man in the nose. She winced at the harsh snapping sound that echoed with the girl's movement and the way the men of the room, turned there attention to the sound. The man reacted as the girl expected, his hand coming up to cradle his now broken nose, as she darted out of his lap and away from him. What she had not been expecting was for him to growl, and follow. Grabbing the pitcher from her table, the girl slammed it into his face, again. 

            "For the love of anything, help!" The serving girl hissed in effort. 

            Sighing softly, she braced her legs against the chair, and coiled her body. Once the man stood up again, fury on his face, she kicked the table at him, sending him sprawling backwards. Grabbing the girls arm, she moved backwards, careful to keep her hood up, in the one direction that would either get them both killed, or would give them a chance to escape. She winced as her battle senses kicked into gear, a pitcher flying over their heads as she yanked the serving girl down, before shoving her to the side to dodge the chair that was thrown at them. 

            "I hate bar fights," she mutters, before dragging them both out of the way of another chair. Darting backwards, she barely managed to get behind Vega, before a bottle of wine rolled at his feet, smashing on his steel-capped boots, its contents drenching the bottom of his boots, with rivulets of slash running down the top to mingle with the grime that encased the top. Coincidentally, all movement in the inn stopped, they stared at the now confused man in shock.

            'Hope he isn't to drunk to know what's going on…' She thought, before pushing the taller women behind her, her eyes going wide underneath the hood that she had managed to keep in place. 

            Vega turned towards the man in front of him, his eyes narrowing as he turned his full attention for the first time, it seemed, upon the man, barely sober enough to stand "Is there a reason for this? Or do I get to make one up?"

            The man glowered vacantly at Vega, "It's none of your business, military bitch." His lips curled up in a cruel smirk, as if he had made a good joke

            This made her wince, as she pushed the girl even further back, definitely drunk beyond all reasoning…

            Vega stood, his gaze darkening. His hand lightly resting on the handle of the katana that even she had not been aware of him carrying, his eyes turning into dark coals as his glared acidly down at the man before him. "I would not say such things."

            The man spat at his feet, "And what are you going to do about it pretty boy?" He eyed his hand around the hilt of his sword contemptuously "You gonna hurt me with that pretty little toy?" He sneered, staggering forward on his own weight. If anything, by the narrowing of Vega's eyes, and the way his battle aura shifted ominously into existence, she figured he had now succeeded in pissing Vega off.

            There was a shriek, and an arc of blood, which flew to smatter the people directly behind the unfortunate man. He was sitting awkwardly on the ground, a hoarse moan escaping from his lips while his left arm lay limply on the ground next to him, his right hand feebly trying to staunch the blood flowing from the fresh wound, with Vega starring coldly down at him. His sword was unsheathed, fresh blood dripping from the delicate edge as he stared at him. 

            "I loath ignorant people," he explained to the man in front of him, "and you are incredibly ignorant... or maybe your just stupid." The man's eyes widened, as he whimpered up at Vega, as if he were a punished dog. 

            Turning the serving girl away from the soaked Vega, she pushed her into the kitchen, her own stomach threatening to heave the food that had not yet digested back up at her. There was the sound of something slicing through bone, before the door shut behind them the scream seemed to reverberate through the kitchen walls even then. The girl was pale and trembling, as the cook ushered her to the back of the room, and settled her in a corner. 

            Turning to the employee staircase, she darted as quickly as her own shaking legs would take her; moving quickly to avoid detection, she made it to her room with a groan, before closing the door behind her and collapsed at the doorway. Turning the serving girl away from the scene, she pushed her into the kitchen, her own stomach threatening to heave the food that had not yet digested back up at her. There was the sound of something slicing through bone, before the door shut behind them, a scream echoing through the kitchen even then. The girl was pale and trembling, as the cook ushered her to the back of the room, and quickly settled her into a corner. 

            Turning to the employee staircase, she darted as quickly as her own shaking legs would take her, moving quickly she made it to her room with a groan, before closing the door behind her. Grabbing her pack, she stuffed the few articles she had taken out of it, back into their pockets; with another quick glance she heaved it over her shoulder, before returning her hood to where it had lain over her eyes. Opening the door, an audible squeak emitted from her at the sight in front of her, before she was roughly shoved backwards, the door being shut behind her by the man in front of her, she desperately searched the room for any means of weaponry, as he turned back to her. 

            'Stupid Keta, stupid, stupid, stupid, you should have just left, and gotten new supplies elsewhere, stupid!'

            "You weren't just going to leave, were you?" he questioned gently.   

            She swallowed hard at that. His tone had changed into a deep sort of purr, though his eyes had lost none of their raging light, and now at being the focus of that gaze, she was desperately trying to remind herself to breath. "What do you want?" she snapped, horror shooting through her at that. Was her mouth trying to get her killed?

            His eyes narrowed, before he cocked his head at her, "Ah so you are female, I had wondered…"

            Indignation flared, though she forced it down, her own anger bubbling underneath the surface, as she glared at him from behind the safety of her hood. "Now that you have satisfied your curiosity, you can leave," she retorted.

            A slight curl of his lips had her backing up, until her back hit the bed pole, as he stared down at her. "Feisty little thing, aren't you?" There was a quick movement by him, a moment later, her hood was thrown back, and he was staring down at her in amusement. "But not very pretty."

            Fury flashed through her again as his condescending words, as her own narrowed gaze rose to meet his. "I said leave." She spat.

            A brow rose steadily over one dark eye, "I don't feel like it," a hand shoved her roughly back into the bedpost, "You would do good to be silent, wench, before I lose my temper."

            Before she had time to reply, his gaze feel upon her clothing and by the narrowing of his gaze, and cold expression that shifted over his features, she knew he recognized the make of her uniform. "So you're the one who has been following me." He murmured thoughtfully, his gaze turning moving past her, before he once again turned his attention back to her, "Pity the rebellion didn't send a prettier girl; I would have enjoyed breaking her, I am sure." She swallowed when she caught sight of the expression in his dark eyes before they shuttered closed. Swallowing hard, she realized she needed to move... and quickly. 

            Years of self-defense on the streets the guiding force behind her movements, as her body kicked in where her mind was no longer functioning. As she slammed her small fist up at his face, her knee moving in unison with the movement. Vega Obscura was well known for his ability to read people, but she doubted even he had ever had someone counter him as such. As he had not grown up on the streets, not after the Count had taken him in anyway. A smirk rose to his lips, as he easily blocked her fist, about the moment her knee connected with his lower anatomy, sending him backwards. 

            No matter how powerful, strong or virile a man was, not many could take a blow there, and remain standing. She watched as he went down like a brick, a smirk rising to her own lips before self-preservation kicked back in, and she darted towards the window. It was a two-story drop, yet she was willing to risk it. Grabbing the water basin that sat on the desk near the window, she turned and threw it at his head, the sound of it connecting ringing in the silent room. Before she threw the window open, and jumped.

            She hissed several curses under her breath as her ankle twisted under her as she landed, the fall being just a little more than she had calculated... As she rose to her feet, she almost howled in protest when her ankle went out from under her once more. Taking a deep breath, she stilled herself before forcing herself upwards once more. Whimpering as pain lanced up her leg, she hobbled as quickly as she could, forcing her ankle to co-operate, in the general direction of where she had hid her Zoid. She did not doubt the Fury and its fuming pilot would be after her before long. Vega just wasn't the type to take a blow like that and let it slide. The sight of her Sykes, it gleaming in the pale light, almost did her in with relief. Pushing herself to continue, she grasped the rung she used to climb, and began the painful journey upwards. 

            Getting up and into the cockpit took more work than normal, but she managed. Booting the system smoothly, years of practice enabling her to do it in moments, she shifted the Zoid into motion. She had to get out of the range of his scanners, and fast. She would rest in the woods tonight, and follow him in the morning. It would be cold, as the rain was already picking up once more, but by far much safer.  Then once her time slot was over, she would request a transfer. There was no way she was trailing him now. 

            'At least he didn't ask me my name…'


End file.
